Fated for the Lion
Read Fated for the Lion Online
Authors: Lyra Valentine
Copyright © 2016 by Lyra
Valentine
All rights reserved. No part
of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form
or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or
mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher,
except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain
other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.
This is a work of fiction.
Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the
products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any
resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely
coincidental.
Fated for the Lion: Carver
City Shifters #1 by Lyra Valentine May 2016
Barely containing her curses and grumbles, Lena hoisted a
box into her arms. Her desk had been distilled down to the contents that half
filled one box: photo frames, coffee mug, and a plastic dinosaur given to her
by her niece. Sneaking a glance between thick lashes, she stuffed a stapler
under the frames. It was petty thievery, but it made her feel better.
Seething with rage, she stomped out of her cubicle and down
the center row. Richard Johnson had a reputation of getting up close and
personal with his assistants. Lena received her promotion to personal assistant
the previous week, after his last conquest left for different pastures,
presumably the kind that didn’t get fresh with her. Richard reassigned Lena,
and he made it two hours before saying something inappropriate and staring down
the neckline of her dress. Dick, indeed.
So maybe she hadn’t been entirely in line when, after a week
of escalating bad behavior, she reached over to grab his balls. But his squelch
of pain did get her message across. Leave her alone, or he’d be looking for
another assistant. The hasty summons to a meeting with HR had been clear
enough. At least charges weren’t being filed if she kept her mouth shut.
Lena ground her teeth as she was escorted out of the
building. Of course she was the one to take the blame and lose her job. Not
that she was passionate about what amounted to spreadsheet review to begin
with. Maybe there was a bright side after all. She could find something better,
and she now knew what Rick the Dick looked like with his balls in a vise grip.
She squinted at the darkening sky. Spring storms were
common, and just what she didn’t need on her walk to the train. She briefly
thought about calling for a cab, then winced. Without a backup job, she needed
to pinch her pennies. She couldn’t justify ordering a cab. With another sigh,
she hurried off toward the metro station.
She paused by a newly constructed building, one of many
springing up like weeds, and leaned against the rough, stone wall to flex her
sore feet. Heels were a bad choice for storming out angry.
Good Lord, what was she going to do? She could maybe stretch
her savings to cover the next month, but she would still need to come up with
rent money by then. She nearly shook with regret and nerves, and suddenly
wished she smoked just to have that little calming escape.
Lena took several deep breaths. And winced when the first
raindrop splattered on a picture frame. She turned her face skyward and
groaned. The sky rumbled, and clouds quickly blew over the sun. Another rumble,
and the sprinkles picked up pace.
“Shit. Shit. Shit.” She cursed, and dashed into the lobby of
the building.
She noticed a “Help Wanted” sign on the door as it was
swinging closed behind her. It was an unusual sign to find in the business
district. Most companies were large enough to have their own HR departments
weeding through applicants before they even stepped foot through the door.
Lena turned back around and saw the rain had turned into a
monsoon. Lighting flashed and she imagined she would feel the thunder claps if
she still stood outside. Resigned, she turned and set her box on the counter.
Might as well inquire about the help while waiting for the rain to stop.
While the receptionist took her sweet time finishing her
call, Lena had a chance to look around the lobby. Shit. She didn’t belong there.
The graceful planters and pottery blended small waiting areas with the open
floor. They had an attached coffee shop, if her nose could be trusted. Even the
receptionist was higher on the social ladder than she ever hoped to achieve. She
could pair thrift store clothes into a nice wardrobe, but she knew designer
clothes when she saw them.
“Yes? May I help you?” The receptionist turned to her.
“Uhm. You know what? I would really appreciate it if you
would call me a cab. It doesn’t look like this rain is stopping anytime soon
and my phone battery died.” Lena quickly thought up the excuse. There was no
way she’d be qualified for any job here, unless it was in the mailroom.
“I’m sorry, we don’t make personal calls. I can direct you
to the guest phones around the corner?” The receptionist’s perfect blonde bob
shook as she fake apologized to Lena.
“C’mon. It’s just a quick call.” Maybe she could pin the
charge back on the company. They looked well off enough to have private car
service. What was a little cab fare to them?
“The business lines are for persons with business here. Do
you have any business, Miss…” The receptionist trailed off, waiting for her
reply.
Lena grumbled under her breath and gathered her box up
again. And froze when she saw him crossing the lobby. Ethan Sanford.
Ho-ly crap. He’d grown up.
She hadn’t seen him since their high school graduation, and
expected to never see him again. All the lean youth that stretched under his
uniform shirts and made her knees weak was gone. Now his broad shoulders filled
out his suit. There wasn’t a trace of pudge or beer belly like most of the
businessmen she knew.
His light brown hair was cropped close, instead of the
shaggy waves she remembered, and his cheeks were dusted with a light crop of beard.
His face was harder, though his eyes were just as tough as she remembered.
Hope and delight at seeing him made butterflies alight in
her stomach. Then she frowned. Ethan hadn’t noticed her in school. She doubted
he’d even remember her now, and certainly not from across the room.
***
Ethan only half-listened to his associate chattering away at
his flank. Something about golf courses and getaways, as if he had anytime to
get away from the business lately. He liked to have his hands in the pie, especially
when setting up a new wing of the company.
Emily shot him a glance as his group crossed the lobby. He
wondered if she knew how ridiculous she looked when she licked her lips at him.
The woman at her desk gestured wildly. Awareness tickled at the back of his
mind. He almost expected her to stamp her foot to get Emily’s attention again.
Then she turned and he almost tripped over the recognition. Her spine stiffened
and her frown deepened.
Ethan didn’t need to take a breath to know it was Lena Jeffries.
But he did it anyway, and luxuriated in the scent that was all her own: a wild
mix of coconut and sunshine, and underneath it all came a sweeter scent. His
lion sat tall inside him when it caught that scent. The scent of their mate.
The years after high school had done good things to Lena.
She’d filled out in all the right places. Her simple grey dress bordered on
almost improper for business. It clung to her hips, and nipped in at her waist.
The neckline was low, but she added a scarf to cover her ample cleavage. His
eyes slipped lower, over her full thighs and shapely calves. Her tiny feet were
propped in scuffed heels that’d been worn for far too long and he suddenly
wanted to take her across his lap and rub away the day’s pain.
He ran a hand through his hair and willed his inner beast to
calm. Leaving the chattering fool at the elevator, Ethan stalked across the
lobby. The cat wanted to pounce on her right there, roll her in his scent, and
strip her naked. Everything he’d been denied when they were younger.
“Lena Jeffries. What are you doing here?” Ethan’s voice was
low and full of his beast.
She flinched at her name on his lips. She inhaled sharply,
and he picked up nervous determination on her exhale. “I’m here to inquire
about a job. I saw your sign in the window.”
“You said no such thing. Mr. Sanford, she was trying to get
me to call her a cab.” The receptionist objected.
Ethan nodded without looking at Emily. “I think that sign
was meant for the coffee shop through the lobby.”
Lena’s shoulders drooped. Ethan resisted the urge to reach
out and stroke her arm. His lion growled. He wanted to comfort their mate.
That word again. Mate. It was impossible. Lena wasn’t a
shifter. Unless he claimed her and turned her—
yes, yes, yes
, the
lion urged—there would be no mate. He clamped down hard on that thought.
It was a dangerous idea.
He looked down at the box in her arms. Her eyes met his, and
he saw a flicker of indignation in the steely grey. Understanding dawned on
him, and he—and the lion—wanted to protect her. “Why don’t you come
upstairs, and we’ll have a chat. Maybe we have an opening for you.”
He gestured toward the elevator, where the small entourage
waited for him. He let her enter the cramped space first, then followed her
closely. Ethan swallowed hard and avoided looking at her. Her scent was
overwhelming over the others’ and he claimed her with his space. If the other
males with him even thought about looking at her…
No. He adjusted his tie. That wasn’t very businesslike. Even
if the men knew they worked with a shifter, it wouldn’t be good practice to
disembowel them. Word would get around.
His eyes followed her as she stepped out of the elevator,
and he took a deep breath of air that was no longer stuffed with her. He
skimmed over her long neck, revealed by the slick knot she’d tied her dark
brown hair into, and resisted the urge to push his nose against her skin and
breath her in deep again. His eyes traveled lower, over the nip of her waist,
and the flare of her hips. He was sorely tempted to pull her flush against his
body and feel the round globes of her ass against his cock.
His lion growled with matching lust. Biting back his groan,
Ethan schooled his beast to calm. He hoped she wouldn’t turn around and notice
his reaction. Damn her and the hold she had over him. It’d always been
difficult to be around her, especially back then when there had been no other
option. His parents had been leaders of the pride then, and didn’t trust
humans.
That was then. And she was here now…
She wasn’t getting away from him. Not without a taste. His
lion, usually easy to control, fought tooth and nail against Ethan’s control.
It wanted to roll her over, sink his teeth in her, mark her as theirs.
There was no denying his beast wanted Lena. It’d always
taken an interest in the curvy girl, but there was nothing to be done. Not
without revealing his true nature to her. Even with the werewolves stirring the
pot for all shifters and outing their existence, he didn’t know if she’d
welcome his furry side with open arms. He couldn’t put her in a position to
reject him and his beast. The lion snarled at the hard tug of control, and
prowled just under Ethan’s skin.
“Wait here.” He growled and gestured to the overstuffed
seats near the upper reception desk. He needed to finish the meeting with his
current crowd, and then his schedule would be clear of everything except her.
Maybe he’d have the big cat back under control then.
“Miss Jeffries, Mr. Sanford will see you now.”
Shit. All her carefully prepared interview responses went
out the high-rise window. Lena left her box where it was, not wanting to be
more encumbered than she was with her own mind. She’d spent the half hour alone
trying to remember the proper answers to potential questions, but the assistant
and imminent encounter with Ethan pushed her haphazardly crafted words out of
her head.
His assistant primly turned on her heel after giving her a
quick assessing look and walked back toward Ethan’s bank of office space. Lena
smoothed her dress over her hips and resisted the urge to glare. The
receptionist downstairs had just been the first line of defense. Should anyone
get through her, they had a second gatekeeper to charm. Neither of them found
her worthy of entering Ethan’s inner sanctum, and yet here she was.
She couldn’t help but notice this one had removed her jacket
and looked utterly comfortable in the space. Her eyebrows quirked. Had Ethan
turned into the kind of man that boinked his assistants? Maybe he was no better
than Rick the Dick. A shiver ran down her spine. She might not mind the
harassment if it came from Ethan.
The assistant led Lena into a hallway of glass. Lena flicked
nervous glances into the conference rooms they passed, and looked quickly away
if they were full. Judging by the framed community and building plans, Ethan’s
company was a large development firm. A successful one, at that. The furniture
and decor in the glass-walled conference rooms looked expensive.
She felt ill. She didn’t know what she’d gotten herself
into. She almost turned on her heel to collect her box and leave when they
reached the end of the hall. Large double doors opened into an even larger
private office.
Lena swallowed hard and stepped inside.
She heard the double doors close behind her, then registered
the assistant stepping sideways through another door. Another sharp click let
her know she was alone with Ethan.
“Come in, Lena, please. I won’t bite.”
Her nerves spiked even before she had a look at his private
office. A bank of glass was at his back, and lit him up like an angel. He
wasn’t in business dress anymore. He’d taken off his jacket and tie, and sat in
a white shirt with thin blue stripes. It fit him entirely too well, and the
rolled up sleeves revealed tanned forearms that looked capable of lifting cars
off children without an adrenaline rush.
She stepped across the room, feeling as if she were entering
the lion’s den.
“Much.” He murmured quietly as she took a seat across from
him at the desk.
Damn. Her pulse quickened, and she told herself it had nothing
to do with distracting thoughts of him nibbling across her collarbone. It was
entirely unfair for him to be so calm and collected, and send her thoughts
spiraling into the gutter.
“Listen, Ethan. I don’t want to waste your time. This is
clearly out of my depth.” She strangled out before he raised a hand and cut off
her speech.
“I am looking for a new assistant. It hasn’t been publicized
within the company yet, but Raquel will be leaving soon. Do you have any
experience with PA work?”
She nodded. “My previous position was assisting one of the
partners at an accounting firm. Prior to that, I was one of a number of
administrators assisting several members on a team.”
“So you have an understanding of the usual PA duties, good.”
He leaned his elbows on the desk and steepled his fingers. An assessing look
entered his eyes. “I would, of course, need you to follow me to meetings, and
occasionally accompany me on business travel. Which you’d be arranging.”
She nodded. He was all business, and the assessing glean
hadn’t left his eyes. There was something about him that bolstered her
confidence. She’d done those duties, minus the travel companion, but he calmed
her nerves about performing them for him.
“Of course.” She nodded again.
“You meet all the basic requirements, it seems. But…” He
scrubbed a hand through his hair.
“Yes?” Oh, how she longed to do the same to his hair. She
imaged how soft the strands would be between her fingers. She could feel color
rising in her cheeks.
“Why did you leave your previous employer? Judging by your
box of goodies, it seems like a recent move.”
Lena winced and felt like a bucket of cold water had been
dumped over her. “Ah, yeah. We had a difference of opinions today.”
Ethan cocked an eyebrow at her. “I hate to say, walking out
doesn’t speak volumes about your trustworthiness.”
Lena hesitated. Damn him for picking up on that. “I didn’t
walk out. I…” She’d been told to keep quiet, or she would be the one facing
charges for assaulting Rick the Dick. But she had the feeling Ethan would suss
out any lie. “I wouldn’t be disrespected.”
She swore she saw amber leach into Ethan’s green eyes. When
she focused harder on him, she saw a hint of the respect she wanted there. He
stood, and slowly rounded the large desk. She clasped her hands in her lap and
crossed her legs to keep from fidgeting.
As he drew closer, she caught a whiff of his scent. Her core
tightened just at one sniff, and she ached to roll around with him and spread
it all over her body, maybe steal a tee shirt and use it as a pillowcase so she
could fall asleep wrapped in his scent. He smelled like a mouth watering
combination of open fields and baked earth and something else dark and uniquely
Ethan Sanford.
“I think that’s something we all desire, Lena.”
His words were soft, but his eyes were anything but. The
color on her cheeks rose again as he openly eyed her up and down. She was
pinned to the chair, and had no wish to leave.
“Would you consider taking the position?”
Oh, she’d consider taking any position he wanted to put her
in. She shook her head to rid herself of such thoughts, and froze. She didn’t
want him thinking she wasn’t accepting his offer. She wet her lips, and noticed
when his eyes dropped to watch her tongue. “Yes.”
“Excellent.” He grinned, then leaned over and punched a
number on his desk phone. She could almost see the outline of his muscles
through the tightened shirt. “Raquel, have Lena’s things collected from the
lobby. She’ll be taking the assistant position. You’ll begin passing everything
over tomorrow.”
He pushed his sleeves up a little further, and Lena tracked
the motion with her eyes. “Now,” he grinned, “how about we catch up over a
drink?”
She followed him as he led her to an elevator in his office.
She tried not to gawk as he swiped a card. A private elevator. Ethan Sanford
was definitely doing well for himself.
A firm hand on the small of her back urged her inside. She
tried not to shiver at his touch, and failed entirely. The numbers above the
door went up instead of the down she expected.
“You live here?” Her jaw dropped when the door parted. It
opened to a penthouse apartment. Just like all the pictures in the home
magazines she flipped through at the grocery store, his apartment was luxurious
all the way through. A bank of windows gave an excellent view of the sprawling
city, just like the office below. Dark, hardwood floors were interrupted by
islands of thick carpet she wanted to dig her toes into. Large pieces of
furniture topped the islands of carpet, and looked ready to engulf anyone who lounged
there. She imagined even Ethan would be dwarfed when he spread out across the
couch, drink in one hand.
“Only during the week. I go home over the weekends. The
commute is too long with the way the city is growing.”
She nodded. The Sanford family home was a thing to behold.
She’d only seen the outside, something that nailed home with her place at the
school. His family could easily afford Ethan’s private school tuition, unlike
her own.
Her nerves jangled. She’d never been comfortable around
wealth. Her father had secured her and her sister’s place at their school
through his teaching position. It’d rankled some of the more class-conscious
students, and they’d teased the girls mercilessly. But never Ethan. He had
ignored her, but he’d never been outright vicious about her lack of money.
He led her further into the apartment, and she continued to
be amazed. The living room was dominated by a large television, and she noticed
circles in the roof that must be a sound system. He waved off to a hallway,
telling her the bedrooms and bathrooms were back that way.
The kitchen looked large and modern, complete with sleek
stainless steel and black appliances. She settled on a barstool at the
countertop, and he stepped around the wide counter. He pulled open a cabinet
and revealed a full supply of liquor. She had a chance to really study him and
took it.
His shoulders were quite broad, and his back looked solid
with muscle, if the way his shirt shifted when he reached high was any
indication. His waist tapered down nicely. She wondered just what kind of pack
he had underneath that annoying fabric. A full six pack, at least. Maybe more?
Didn’t matter, she wanted to trace all those lines with her tongue. She
swallowed hard to keep from drooling at the thought of the long lines of muscle
curving over his hips and making a runway to his package. Her core clenched and
she almost whimpered.
He turned around and she snapped her eyes up. Something in
his face laughed at her, and she felt a blush on her cheeks again. Busted. His
nostrils flared, and she grimaced. Had the stress of the day leaked through her
clothes? Perhaps she could sneak off to the bathroom for a stealthy pit
inspection.
“How about that drink?” He ran his hand over his jaw, and
she had the sudden urge to reach out and stroke him. Damn her traitorous body.
Her heart already pounded from crossing the threshold into his personal space.
She was closer to Ethan than she’d ever been, and now he was her boss. It
wouldn’t be right to jump his bones.
He poured out two glasses of whiskey, and she caught sight
of the label. Top shelf, damn good, she couldn’t afford to even breath it,
whiskey. She took the glass between her hands. She was dangerously close to
Olympic long jumping over a line, if she hadn’t already stepped a toe over. In
her employer’s home, drinking expensive whiskey… Damn Ethan and his good looks.
Every instinct told her to pounce. “That’s a nice sign-on bonus.”
The alcohol lit her tongue with notes of honey, and burned
deliciously going down her throat. Much smoother than the swill she was used
to. She could already feel it warming her stomach and limbs, and it had nothing
to do with Ethan’s close proximity.
She caught him staring openly at her. His attention did
unexpected things to her body. Her nipples pebbled under her dress, and rubbed
against the fabric of her bra. The feeling ignited her arousal, and slithered
down her spine to curl and grow in her core. Her nerves were strummed to high
alert, and the flickering heat in her stomach washed down her slick channel.
Thoughts of Ethan stroking her with his strong hands, pulling her down on his
thick cock, sent her heart racing.
Oh hell, it had everything to do with Ethan.
***
Ethan wasn’t satisfied with the distance between them. He
could see Lena’s breath quickening, and felt his own body start to respond to
her nearness. He refilled their tumblers, then set the bottle down with
deliberate force. He swallowed down his next shot to break their eye contact.
And to get some liquid courage because there was no way he was letting her
leave without trying for more than a drink. His lion swished his tail in barely
contained anticipation.
Respect, she’d said. The tone of her voice strummed along
his nerves. Even his lion sat up and huffed. To speak with such confidence…
She’d make a perfect queen. All shifters came equipped with their own bullshit,
and she’d have none of it. It turned him on like nothing else.
He was a predator, and stalked around the counter slowly. He
trailed a finger down her long neck and across her shoulders as he rounded her
perfect body. Lena caught her lower lip between her teeth. He was far too near
for an employer to stand, but he didn’t care. The moment he caught her scent,
all the years of denied desire came flooding back.
He ran a thumb over her lower lip, plump from where her
teeth had caught the delicate flesh.
“Lena.” His voice was low and it called to her on a primal
level. He could see her pupils dilate, and smell the sweet tang of her arousal
in the air.
“Yes, Ethan?” She stammered.
“You have to know why I asked you up here.”
“I…”
He knew what he hoped. He knew it was very big trouble with
a capital T. “I want you, Lena.”
She blinked, and he saw confusion run across her face. How
could she not guess what he wanted? If anything, he was the one who should be
worried. He’d avoided her as much as possible. She could hate him, or think he
despised her. He needed to make her see that was not the case.
Her heart thudded loudly in her chest as his fingers caught
her chin and forced her to look at him again. Her grey eyes had gone darker,
and he was relieved he wasn’t the only one feeling a little drunk on lust.
Ethan bit back a groan when she turned her head into his
hand and took his thumb into her warm, wet mouth.
She tasted like honey and whiskey when their lips met. His
thumb held her chin captive, but his kiss didn’t start as demanding. He started
soft, and nibbled at her lips. His tongue swept across the seam of her mouth
and implored her to open for him.
When she didn’t break for him, he growled. She whimpered,
submitting, and drove her hands into his hair. He held her close as she opened
her lips to him. His tongue slid and stroked along hers, and turned their
gentle kiss into a sensual, demanding dance. She tugged at the lion inside him,
dragging the beast closer to the surface.